On Friday, July 27, the Perry Center celebrated the graduation of students enrolled in the 2018 Defense Policy and Complex Threats (DPCT) and Cyber Policy Development (CYBER) courses. Attended by more than 70 civilian and military officials from across the Western Hemisphere, the courses included lectures by Perry Center professors and distinguished agency and interagency guest speakers. DPCT, directed by Professor Alejandro Alemán and Dr. Alejandra Bolaños, is designed to examine the institutional governance of the security and defense sectors of the Western Hemisphere. CYBER, directed by Dr. Boris Saavedra, addressed the challenges and policy solutions of the increasing cyber threats.

US Army Lieutenant General Charles Hooper spoke at the graduation ceremony. Currently serving as the Director of the Defense and Security Cooperation Agency, LTG Hooper touched upon the importance of partnership and its critical role stating that “interoperability is critical to ensuring we have uninterrupted communications and farther reaching systems to support kinetic operations.” LTG Hooper believes that enduring partnerships will help with stabilizing, policy formation, and resources management, the most challenging aspects of partnership.